New boss aims to steer Holden back on right road

He’s a man who knows about Corollas and LandCruisers — and now he’s tasked with reviving Holden.

Fresh from a 30-year stint at Toyota, most recently as its Australian president, Dave Buttner is the new chairman and managing director of the former darling of the new-car market.

Without the might of locally made large cars that were the foundation of the original Australian car, Holden has stumbled: sales are at record lows and falling, once-loyal customers have abandoned the brand and some dealers have been scathing of mistakes.

For Buttner, the scenario is very different to what he’s used to, having helped Toyota position itself as a dominant top seller, suffocating others (including Holden and Ford) along the way.

Yet, he has an affinity for Holden; his father owned many, including an FC.

“There’s a strong place in people’s hearts for the brand,” Buttner said on his first day in his new job. “The upside to this franchise is still incredibly high; we just have to get all of our ducks in a row, have our strategic direction and get that navigation clear in everybody’s mind and go for it.”

Not that it was an easy decision to take on a brand on its knees.

Buttner was cautious about taking on the role, test driving current models and speaking extensively to executives from parent company General Motors before signing up for what will be one of the most scrutinised jobs in motoring.

“I didn’t jump at it lightly and I didn’t jump at it quickly,” he says. “I wanted to understand a bit about this iconic brand that I grew up with.”

Buttner is confident GM is committed to making Australia work, but he acknowledges there is a mountain to climb — starting with getting Holden back on shopping lists.

“We have to ensure that people understand the broad product range we now have and the segments in which we have strong product.”

Camera IconHolden thinks the Equinox medium SUV will grow sales.

He’s not ruling out returning the brand to the top sales position — seemingly as unrealistic today as its dramatic fall from grace over the past decade — but says there are many building blocks to be laid before that even becomes a goal.

“To have that aspiration at this juncture I think would be naive,” he says. “We have to be on the consideration set, increased awareness and work with our dealers to ensure the brand can get back to a level where it’s profitable.”

He nominates the Equinox medium SUV — a car competing with the likes of the Toyota RAV4, Subaru Forester, Mazda CX-5, Nissan X-Trail and Honda CR-V — as an opportunity to grow sales.

SUVs have generally been a weakness for Holden — they make up just 31 per cent of the brand’s sales, well off the 43 per cent industry average — which is a concern given sales of the high-riding wagons now outnumber passenger cars.

For the first 60 days, Buttner will tour the 200-strong dealer network, some of whom are hurting from slow sales.

“I want to get the antenna in the air, I want to understand firsthand the issues on people’s minds in relation to the brand and the franchise.”

Raw numbers suggest the dealer network is too large — on average, each Toyota dealer sells three times more than a Holden dealer — but Buttner says there are no plans to downsize further.

Instead, he plans to boost sales, working to rebuild. He says it’s about getting the message out there better.

“We’ve got to make sure we’re providing the right product to meet the dynamics of the market; we have to ensure people know about it, understand it.”

Buttner is saying the right things, cautiously dodging questions of past mistakes he watched unfold from afar.

“My role is not to criticise the past; I wasn’t there,” he says.

But the real test comes in a couple of months. “Once I spend 60 days moving around Australia, speaking to the stakeholders and speaking to the people inside the company, then I’ll have a better idea,” he says. “As a wholesaler you’re always looking to do better.”